Motivation Or Manipulation?
What is the line between motivating sales staff and manipulating sales staff? How do you make sure you don't go over the line and place people under extreme pressure to achieve?
Research both here and overseas shows that high performing sales people identified how important it was to their performance that they remain motivated, which they recognised can be influenced by both internal and external factors, with a sense of self satisfaction found to be the most important contributor to their motivation.
Research also shows that the ability to control their emotions (ie self regulation) was seen as important in keeping sales people focused on key objectives, issues and working to resolve customers' problems.
Having clear tangible goals, performance targets, customer segmentation, competitor awareness, a sound USP (unique selling proposition) and transparent pricing model segmented into individual and team sales plans, as part of a sound sales and business strategy, is what good sales people need and expect, to be able to control their own destiny and achieve their personal and professional goals. This autonomy and control is highly motivating for good sales people.
Selling is a relentless job at the best of times. It's like being an athlete - you set clear goals and work-out in rain, hail or shine. You are committed to overcoming obstacles and challenges and stepping up when it counts.
Beating the competition is hard enough, but if your coach then starts adding to your load by bullying you, putting you down, changing the rules, setting unrealistic goals and training regimes and even, in some cases, completely changing the game or sport you are playing, then all hell breaks loose.
Locus of control is so important for anyone in times of stress, but especially for sales people, who want to earn bonuses or commissions, to be their best and manage themselves to succeed within the given rules. Changing the goal posts and game rules after people have committed to a game plan leaves hard working, dedicated sales people feeling cheated at best. And stressed, disengaged and burnt-out at worst.
Having every keystroke and toilet break monitored implies that no one can be trusted. This is not an example of a healthy sustainable sales culture.
If you are a dedicated hard working person who prides themselves on being able to be trusted to do a good job and management wants to manage you this way, it is very demotivating indeed.
One of my colleagues who has worked in sales, in both call centre and field sales, for many years had this to say: "My experience in these environments is that the word ‘manipulation' comes into effect when management have moving targets. In saying this I mean that half way through the game, someone changes the rules.
"The rules usually alter when companies feel that the targets are too easy and they are increased, new products appear, thus the commission plan alters, the compulsory amount of outbound calls doubles. You may achieve your results, however in the 11th hour management decide that commission will only be paid to those that completed their calls in a certain time frame etc."
So how do we create a climate of motivation? To motivate sales staff is through honesty, loyalty and clear direction; really no different to how you would want your sales staff to treat your customers. To achieve consistent results from your sales staff and have good morale, you need to provide a very clear achievable bonus or commission structure, with no moving goal posts.
The criteria that bounds this bonus or commission (that is, amount of calls made per day/visits, markets penetrated, sales made, profits achieved etc) also needs to be achievable, structured and based on sound strategy and facts. Provide further incentives if you must, to focus on certain products throughout the year, but do not alter the bonus or commission structure.
SHL, a world-renowned psychometric test developer, has identified some key motivating factors. While these can vary from person to person, they give a good indication:
- money
- competition
- achievement
- pace
- social contact
- recognition
- growth, and
- autonomy
Management need to act as true mentors and motivators for their staff, especially in sales call centres as this is, or can be, a very mundane job, and staff need to feel comfortable to bounce ideas or frustrations off their manager without feeling like they are being judged or readied for execution.
So if sales targets are continually changing and sales people are finding it increasingly difficult to get bonuses or commissions, ask yourself:
- What is motivating senior management to do this?
- Is the sales strategy wrong? Did management make a mistake?
- Who will benefit financially or career wise from these changing targets?
- Are management's actions self-serving at the cost of their people?
Remember: A fish always rots from the head down.
Sue Barrett is Founder & Managing Director of Barrett Pty Ltd, an Australian-based sales fitness firm that helps businesses build high performing sales teams, and is author of ‘Sell Like a Woman'. For further information please email: svb@barrett.com.au or visit the web site: www.barrett.com.au
First published: 25 June 2007.
Last updated: 25 June 2007.